1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a protective shell structure preferably having an ovoidal configuration and being specifically dimensioned and configured to define a hollow interior in which an occupant may be supported in a sitting or at least partially inclined position wherein the shell is positionable on a supporting surface of a vehicle such as but not limited to the vehicle seat and anchored by a conventional restraining strap or the like wherein the occupant is adequately maintained in the seated or inclined position in case of vehicle emergency but is further protected from impact or collapse of the vehicle structure and from direct impact to his person.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Safety devices including seat belts of various designs and configurations or safety harnesses have been known and incorporated in vehicles, especially automobiles, for many years. In the case of adults or children old enough to be supported in an upright fashion in a conventional vehicle seat, shoulder and lap harnesses generically known as "seat belts" are the typical means of securement or protection in terms of insuring that the occupant is maintained in the seat during emergency situations, however, such safety devices are primarily designed to prevent the occupant from being thrown from the automobile or against the dash or window portions of the vehicle.
Infants on the other hand generally require somewhat greater protection since they do not have the size or muscle tone to maintain themselves in an upright, stabilized position in the conventional seats associated with an automobile, airplane or any like vehicle. Accordingly, infant carriers or protective seat structures are in common use in today's modern society. Typically, such infant safety seats are mountable on a conventional seat or like supporting surface of a vehicle and anchored in such position by a structure incorporated in the seat itself or through the use of the seat belts or like structure associated with the vehicle. Additional containment means may be mounted on the infant seat structure so as to insure that the infant will not be thrown or inadvertently removed from the infant seat. Existing U.S. patents being generally representative of safety seats or infant carriers include the U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,311,339 to Heath; Converse, 4,436,341 and Koenig, 4,579,385.
Even in light of the various safety devices and structures being utilized, it is still a statistical fact that severe damage and death is frequently caused in more severe crashes or vehicular accidents due to various portions of the vehicle impacting against the occupant even though he has been maintained in his seat. Accordingly, there is a need in this industry for a support structure and protective assembly capable of effectively surrounding or at least partially enclosing an occupant of a vehicle. Such a preferred structure is formed of an impact-resistant material of sufficient strength to prevent the vehicle, or portions thereof from collapsing against the occupant's body in the event of severe accidental collision or crash of the vehicle.